8 Useful tips for the SIELE exam and how to pass it

Congratulations! If you are going to read this article, it means that you want to take a big step in your time as a Spanish student.

overcome the SIELE exam It will officially accredit your level of Spanish and open the doors to job offers or university studies.

Sounds good, right?

In this article I am going to give you 8 tips how to overcome it.

8 Useful Tips for the SIELE Exam

First of all, do you know the main characteristics of the SIELE exam? 

We recommend that you enter the following link on SIELE Instituto Cervantes to know the entire scoring system and the duration of each part of the exam.

The exam is made up of four tests: 

• Reading comprehension.
• Listening comprehension.
• Written expression and interaction.
• Oral expression and interaction.

You should know that the SIELE exam has a validity of 5 years. However, it has many benefits.

 The advantages of the SIELE certificate are the following: 

• It is a certificate official, is recognized by many associated educational and business institutions internationally.
• You can perform the SIELE in a multitude of exam centers and schools that teach Spanish.
• It cannot be suspended. Depending on the score obtained you will have a certain level.
• It's all online and very convenient to do. 
• It is flexible. The student decides when to take the exam. 
• The results are published 3 weeks later.It is perfect if you need to prove your level urgently, in a short time.
• You have more freedom when taking the exam: you can choose between global SIELE exam or individual modalities.

Now that you know the main characteristics and advantages of the SIELE exam, we start with the tips.

1. Do you know what your level of Spanish is?

Make sure you are clear about the contents of your level, according to CEFR.

Before you start taking the exam, prepare well and be aware of what level you have and what level you want to achieve. Focus on the content at your level. 

And how can you know what the contents of your level are?

You can check it in the CEFR levels (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages)

The CEFR levels are as follows:

• A1-A2: basic level.
• B1-B2: intermediate.
• C1-C2: advanced.

Don't know what your level of Spanish is?

In that situation we recommend that you do a Spanish level test at some exam center.

If you want you can put yourself in contact us and we will be happy to help you.

2. Research the platform where it is taken before the exam

The SIELE exam is done only through the internet.

On the official website you have SIELE mock exams and it is advisable to practice with these models before officially presenting yourself. 

You can make them in your own home. How comfortable! 

Familiarize yourself with the platform to avoid wasting time or making technical errors on exam day, it is essential.

3. Be clear about all the parts of the exam before taking it

Being cautious will give you knowledge and peace of mind. 

Check what type of tests you are going to perform, how you have to answer in each part of the exam and how much time you will need for each exercise is essential.

You can only achieve this by the practice.

As the saying goes: “Practice makes perfect.” 💪

4. Know the exam correction criteria

Each part of the exam has correction criteria. You need to know them and adapt to them to get a good grade.

For example, in the written part It is not enough to write a lot. You must create a text that is cohesive, using connectors, organized and meaningful.

In the oral interaction, the register used must be appropriate to the topic discussed. If we have to talk to our director, we will have to use formal expressions.

Learn connectors, formal vocabulary and expressions to enrich your vocabulary and stand out from the other candidates.

5. Possibility of individual Spanish classes

Have individual classes with a teacher who knows well the SIELE exam It will help you a lot to overcome it and in your learning Spanish.

Likewise, if you have a friend or acquaintance who speaks Spanish, even if he is not a teacher, will also be useful for learn vocabulary, improve your listening comprehension or develop your speaking fluency.

Of course, it's also a great idea to attend group classes.

At Hispania, Spanish school, we offer SIELE exam preparation online courses.

6. Practice the exam format before taking it

You must practice the exam format many times until you know it by heart. 

This way, you will go more calmly to the exam…

You can even do it with your eyes closed! 🤗

We propose to you 3 routines What you can do to practice the format:

write a lot

The exam is done with a computer. Practice your writing with the keyboard.

You have to be a typewriter!

It's a joke. 🤗

Simply learn to write a little quickly and know the Spanish keyboards: the arrangement of the letters, where the ñ is, how to put accent marks or question marks.

Record yourself talking about the issues

Did you know that the oral part of the SIELE Is it also done with the computer? 

 Sometimes this confuses a lot of people. It feels like we're talking to ourselves and it's a little weird.

The ability to speak into a device can also be acquired.

Look at all the YouTubers! The energy they have and how fun they are while talking to your camera, right?

In order not to remain blank in the oral part, we recommend that you practice a lot at home recording you on some topics recurring in exams.

Also you can talk to your laptop or your mobile, but if you record yourself it's great because you can also see the mistakes you make later. 

Yes also a teacher can see these recordings and correct you, that would be great.

Show that SIELE computer that you have prepared very well.

You're sure to get a great grade!

Use the preparation time to practice the timing for each part

In some tasks you have a preparation time which does not count as time to perform the exercises.

In this preparation time you can read the questions with attention and underline keywords or vocabulary, write down the formal words What are you going to use in oral interaction? read all questions and possible solutions in reading comprehension, etc.

This will save you time later.

7. Answer all the questions. Errors do not deduct points

Whether you do the global SIELE exam, like the independent modalities, it is very important that you do the following:

Answer all questions. 

Errors do not penalize. In fact, not responding to any of the statements does deduct points.

So even if you don't know the answer, answer it.

Maybe you have luck on your side and you respond well.

Sometimes miracles exist, don't you think? 🙂

Always try to respond to simple questions first and then to the more complex ones. 

This way you will save time and the score obtained will be higher.

8. Take advantage of your time and get straight to the point

The exam has a fixed duration and we cannot exceed it. In the case of global SIELE exam, The durations of the four tests are:

• Reading comprehension: 60 minutes.
• Listening comprehension: 55 minutes.
• Written expression and interaction: 50 minutes.
• Oral expression and interaction: 15 minutes.

When you practice in your classes or at home, try to take the tests during these times. 

At first it will be difficult and you will exceed the indicated minutes, but with practice you will eventually get used to it.

you just need patience and perseverance and you'll see how it's not that difficult.

These have been our practical advice when taking the SIELE exam.

However, we think that there is another fundamental element to successfully pass the exam: you attitude.

Be optimistic and enjoy the process. Learning to take an exam of this type can be very nice. 

You will learn a lot of Spanish grammar and lexicon along the way, you will be more disciplined and when you get your official spanish certificate After so much effort you will feel very proud.

Cheer up! Don't give up. 

You're going to do great. reach mastery of Spanish will be the reward. 💪💪👏

Enjoy the experience

What are the benefits What will you get if you get your SIELE degree?

We tell you below:

Use the SIELE exam as an opportunity to improve your Spanish

As we have mentioned before, in the process of your preparation for SIELE you will learn:

• Lots of grammar.
• New vocabulary.
• Textual and oral connectors.
• You will know how to best distribute a text.
• You will know which words or expressions are appropriate in different contexts.

That is, you Spanish language level will improve a lot, Up to the clouds!

Certify your level quickly

When will you know the score obtained from your exam?

Very soon, just three weeks later having done it.

Sometimes we make sudden decisions like entering a University master's degree the following month or start working in a new company. 

In these cases the SIELE is perfect because you will certify your level of Spanish very quickly.

Remember that there are many associated institutions to the SIELE exam. Most universities and companies accredit it.

Use your exam as an excuse to visit Spain or a Spanish-speaking country

If you have a certified Spanish degree, you will have proven to yourself that you know Spanish and that you will be prepared to converse with native speakers.

you will have won very confident with your new language.

That must be celebrated!

What better way to celebrate than by visiting Spain or a Spanish-speaking country?

Maybe before you were afraid of the language, but after passing the SIELE you will no longer have excuses.

Visit Spain and Test your command of Spanish! 😁

Surely after all this information, you now know much more about the SIELE exam and you feel like doing it.

If you liked it, I encourage you to read our blog of Hispania, Spanish school. Where you will find very useful information about the world of Spanish.

In our school we have some face-to-face SIELE exam preparation courseswith great professionals who will help you get a great grade on your exam in a very short time.

Do you want to take advantage of this great opportunity to delve deeper into improving the language and getting a official spanish certificate?

Then study a SIELE course at Hispania, a Spanish school. 

Article written by Charles  Martinez for Hispania, Spanish school

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